SUNY Cobleskill
English
Is racism a learned behavior or human nature?
The past few years in America have showed the true racist colors that paint our nation. Racism is a very controversial topic here in the United States (and in my classroom but, it’s something I desperately need to speak about). The real definition of racism states that it is “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or race”. To rephrase, if you use ethnicity to determine whether or not you are better than someone, you are racist. The act of “racism” also allows certain ethnic groups to discriminate against other ethnic groups through the act of institutional racism. Institutionalized racism can be inflicted upon ethnic groups when an ethnic group is able to deny another group the standard civil liberties.
Though America is now old enough to walk on it’s own and has the knowledge on how to keep peace, racism is still throwing us off. The issue is still prevailing. Racism is the reason we were fighting unnecessary wars and still are till this day.. Through the years, the question arises whether …show more content…
There’s a lack of educational oppurtunities to certain peoples. When you control a man’s level of education, you control everything. Why do you think slave owners didn’t want their slaves reading or trying to learn the alphabet. Education was monitored and limited. This isn’t just exclusive to minorities. Education also effects the oppressors aswell in terms of racism. Those that accepted racism and prejudice acts admit that it’s because it’s how society was and that was all they knew. The thought to question whether they were being humane never crossed their mind because they were conditioned to living like